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Todd Archer, ESPN writer
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys’ season came to an end with a 23-19 loss to the Washington Commanders on Sunday, and now comes the challenging part.
Does owner and general manager Jerry Jones keep Mike McCarthy, whose contract expires Wednesday, or begin the search for his ninth head coach since he bought the team in 1989?
For more than 40 minutes, Jones spoke to the media outside the locker room, speaking glowingly about McCarthy but never fully committing to him for 2025 and beyond.
“I don’t know if I’m considering making a change, is really what I’m trying to say,” Jones said.
McCarthy has posted a 49-35 regular-season record with the Cowboys, but is 1-3 in the playoffs, has not advanced beyond the divisional round and suffered two of the most painful postseason losses at home in the history of the franchise.
The Cowboys’ Super Bowl drought is now at 29 seasons.
“I think Mike is one of the best coaches out there,” Jones said. “They made him coach here because I thought that, and he’s done absolutely nothing to diminish my opinion of him as a coach.”
McCarthy removed any doubt about his wishes. He wants to return to the Cowboys, despite a number of jobs that are currently open and others that could open soon.
“Absolutely. I’ve invested a lot here. And the Cowboys have invested a lot in me,” McCarthy said. “And then there’s a personal side to all of these decisions. They all point in the right direction. I think every time you invest your time, your energy, your beliefs, the connection that you have, the relationships that exist here, the understanding of what makes you that an organization can do and is willing to do, those are all positive attributes that are taken into account.
“But, you know, absolutely, I’m a builder. I believe in building programs. I believe in developing young players. So, at the end of the day, it’s about winning, and you have to have those components in place to carry to where it needs to be. I think we have a very good foundation here.”
McCarthy’s 174 wins are 13th all-time in NFL history.
“I don’t like to talk about myself that way, but I’ll be clear: I’m a winner. I know how to win,” he said. “I’ve won a championship. I won a championship in this building, and that’s who I am. We’ll see where it goes.”
Jones did not offer a timeline for making a decision, other than to say he will follow the past when he has made coaching changes. McCarthy was chosen as Jason Garrett’s successor 10 days after the 2019 season ended.
The Cowboys have exclusive negotiating rights on McCarthy until Jan. 14. However, Jones seemed to indicate that he would grant McCarthy permission to speak to other teams if asked.
McCarthy hopes to meet with Jerry and Stephen Jones, the executive vice president, this week. Normally, he holds an exit meeting with all the players starting on Monday.
To date, there have been no talks with McCarthy’s agent, Don Yee, about an extension.
“It’s a fact that I’ve decided whether we’re going to sit down and talk about a deal,” Jerry Jones said.
After leading the Cowboys to the playoffs from 2021 to 2023 with three straight 12-5 finishes, McCarthy and his entire coaching staff entered 2024 into the final years of their contracts. The Cowboys struggled offensively and defensively early in the season, then suffered injuries that led to a five-game losing streak.
The Cowboys finished the season with players on injured reserve accounting for nearly $90 million in cap space, in quarterback Dak Prescott, guard Zack Martin, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, cornerback Trevon Diggs and receiver open CeeDee Lamb.
Jones said the coach’s decision would not be based solely on this season’s results but on a five-year vision. And he took the blame for the squad composition that fell short this season.
“That’s very fair. I always provide the roster to the coaches. And if you don’t get there, you’ll always have doubts,” Jones said. “We made a lot of decisions. Some of them don’t work out as well as others.”
Jones was impressed with the way the Cowboys played after all the injuries. They won four of five games to stay in playoff contention through Week 16. Key players like Prescott and Micah Parsons have supported McCarthy’s return, which Jones said was important.
“We have a lot of work to do,” Jones said, “but we’re certainly all looking for ways to improve.”
